On July 4, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law amendments to the Weapons Law, which include everything from reducing the length of service required to obtain a gun license to legalizing night vision devices. The bill was registered in the State Duma on June 4, 2026 and was approved by the Federation Council on July 1, followed by the President. Thus, only one month passed from the presentation of the initiative to the signing of the amendments. The Echo spoke to gun experts to find out the reasoning behind this.
The main change is that the period of continuous possession of a hunting weapon, which allows you to purchase a handgun, has been reduced from five to three years. The ban on the installation of night vision devices and thermal imagers on civilian and service weapons has been lifted, the circulation of air weapons with brass energy greater than 25 J has been legalized, and test firings of handguns are now required only upon initial registration or import into the country, rather than on a regular basis. State paramilitary organizations were authorized to use weapons previously designated for destruction, including those seized from civilians, to protect facilities. Private security companies were allowed to deploy modular (mobile) weapons depots on the front lines.
Speaking to "Echo of Moscow", a source in the arms industry, on condition of anonymity, said that the Russian arms industry community has been demanding to reduce the service period from five to three years for "about 15 years", because the service period alone "does not provide any guarantee". He believes that the war in Ukraine is the reason why the authorities have finally agreed to this relaxation after years of "disarmament" policy.
"Suddenly it became clear that people do not know how to shoot and are not ready for war at all. We had to "loosen the screw", otherwise Russia will soon not have civilians who know which end of the weapon to hold," the source explained.
He also explained the legalization of night signs as a practical necessity. they are needed in the service arms of private security companies to combat drones at night, "without a night vision device or a thermal imaging device, this is a pretty hopeless endeavor." He noted that such markings had previously been placed on civilian weapons, but they were certified differently and allowed only for night hunting. Now the restriction has been lifted for service weapons as well.
Military expert Pavel Lusin, in a conversation with "Echo of Moscow", described the current changes as purely technical clarifications, compared to a more significant change adopted in March 2026, when employees of private security companies were allowed to acquire small combat-class weapons. According to the expert, all current changes should be considered within the framework of this logic. "The state is trying to somehow protect companies from drones"
